Amos 4:13

Context

4:13 For here he is!

He¹ formed the mountains and created the wind.

He reveals² his plans³ to men.

He turns the dawn into darkness⁴

and marches on the heights of the earth.

The Lord, the God who commands armies,⁵ is his name!”

Amos 7:10

Context

Amos Confronts a Priest

7:10 Amaziah the priest of Bethel⁶ sent this message⁷ to King Jeroboam of Israel: “Amos is conspiring against you in the very heart of the kingdom of Israel!⁸ The land cannot endure all his prophecies.⁹

[4:13] ¹tn Heb “For look, the one who.” This verse is considered to be the first hymnic passage in the book. The others appear at 5:8-9 and 9:5-6. Scholars debate whether these verses were originally part of a single hymn or three distinct pieces deliberately placed in each context for particular effect.

[4:13] ²tn Or “declares” (NAB, NASB).

[4:13] ³tn Or “his thoughts.” The translation assumes that the pronominal suffix refers to God and that divine self-revelation is in view (see 3:7). If the suffix refers to the following term אָדַם (’adam, “men”), then the expression refers to God’s ability to read men’s minds.

[4:13] ⁴tn Heb “he who makes dawn, darkness.” The meaning of the statement is unclear. The present translation assumes that allusion is made to God’s approaching judgment, when the light of day will be turned to darkness (see 5:20). Other options include: (1) “He makes the dawn [and] the darkness.” A few Hebrew mss, as well as the LXX, add the conjunction (“and”) between the two nouns. (2) “He turns darkness into glimmering dawn” (NJPS). See S. M. Paul (Amos [Hermeneia], 154), who takes שָׁחַר (shakhar) as “blackness” rather than “dawn” and עֵיפָה (’efah) as “glimmering dawn” rather than “darkness.”

[4:13] ⁵tn Traditionally, “God of hosts.”

[7:10] ⁶map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[7:10] ⁷tn The direct object of the verb translated “sent” is elided in the Hebrew text. The words “this message” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[7:10] ⁸tn Heb “in the middle of the house of Israel.”

[7:10] ⁹tn Heb “words.”